ERC Is Already Ashamed of Their Name

ERC is currently a losing brand, and even its leaders know and accept it. The leadership headed by Oriol Junqueras would be considering running in the 2027 municipal elections under different initials. Junqueras's number two, Elisenda Alamany, has come out to deny the information after the commotion it caused.

It is not the first time they have been forced to backtrack. A month ago, they had to reverse their proposal to change unique financing for a consortium with the State. Now they are denying the change of initials, despite Joan Tardà recently opening the door to electoral alliances with the Comuns.

According to information appearing in various media, Junqueras would have proposed renouncing the ERC initials in major cities like Girona and Tarragona. The goal would be to increase electoral prospects for the 2027 municipal elections. In the background is the decline of ERC, which lost 300,000 votes in the 2019 municipal elections and 180,000 in the 2024 Catalan elections.

ERC not only lost the Generalitat on May 12, 2024, but also obtained its worst results since 2010 and the largest loss of seats in its history. ERC has gone from leading the independence movement to being a residual force. Not only that, but the prestige of its brand and its leaders continues to sink with each new decision.

ERC, Synonymous with Disrepute

Oriol Junqueras and Elisenda Alamany now lead a new stage in which they want to open the party beyond independence. Junqueras wants to turn Esquerra into the new Catalan labor party. The first step was the creation of a leftist current headed by Joan Tardà, an ally of Junqueras.

Joan Tardà will try to impose the shift to the left in the second congressional phase of ERC this March. He himself recently proposed convergence with the Comuns and the CUP in a left-wing electoral front. He even hinted at the possibility of sharing the same organization.

The leadership is now considering the possibility of renouncing the ERC initials, which are currently a clear synonym of disrepute. Girona and Tarragona would be the experimental laboratory.

In Girona, the Junquerist Marc Puigtió aspires to run in the next municipal elections with the Moviment Gironí brand. In Tarragona, the leadership would be pressuring candidate Saül Galarreta to adopt the Tarragona Metropolitana brand.

Avoiding Fracture in Local Sections

The proposal would have caused discomfort among a sector of the membership that believes they must run with the ERC initials. The leadership now fears that the initials controversy will further fracture the local sections. In Tarragona, for instance, critics of Junqueras threaten primaries to present an alternative candidate.

To calm the waters, Alamany has clarified that "ERC will present itself with its brand in the main cities of the country, as always and with the utmost ambition." A sign that the Republicans are currently navigating a sea of doubts.